By
VV Balakrishna - HYDERABAD
21st December 2012 11:53 AM
Minor irrigation minister TG Venkatesh is at it again.
Months after he kicked up a storm with his remark that IAS officers who do not perform should be shot dead on the streets, the mantri once again took on the bureaucracy when he said even dishonest officers deliver goods to some extent compared to some honest secretaries.
“Some secretaries do not do any work saying they are honest. If any secretary or officer does not work, he is a ‘Sannasi’ (worthless person), even if he is an honest officer,” the minister said. Even dishonest secretaries deliver at least some goods, he said.
The minister was addressing a media conference as a part of the Praja Hitam programme at the Secretariat. He said principal secretaries needed some sort of training to work better.
The minister said when he took charge as minor irrigation minister, the officers were not up to the mark. Now, the team has a modern outlook in their work, he said.
The minister also explained how he struggled hard to put some systems in place in minor irrigation, APIDC etc.
When Venkatesh made scathing remarks against officials some months ago, it sparked protests from IAS officers, who lodged a complaint with chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy. However, the minister did some damage control later.
Now, during his latest outburst, minor irrigation special secretary Pradeep Kumar, who seated beside the minister kept silent, though he appeared to be taken aback.
IAS ASSN HITS BACK
IAS officers association vice-president Prasanta Mahapatra, when asked about the mantri's comments, said he had not heard the comments of TG Venkatesh.
"Yet, I can make some general remarks. Ministers and officers work under the Constitutional framework and ministers run the government. The ministers should trust their officers. If any honest officer was not doing work, then the minister should pinpoint that particular officer," he added.
He said it was the responsibility of the ministers to utilise the services of officers properly. "If the minister fails to do it, he is only wasting public money. Has Venkatesh submitted any note to the chief minister saying that a particular officer was hanging around without any work in the name of honesty?" Mahapatra wondered.
Public should pose these questions to ministers whenever they make comments against officers, he added.
QUOTE
If any secretary or officer does not work, he is a 'Sannasi'. TG Venkatesh, minor irrigation minister
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